Submitted by
Paul England
a Downhiller
from inglewood, Taranaki, new zealand
Date Reviewed: July 24, 2008
Strengths: Simple single pivot design
very little pedal bob
frame is as strong as chuck norris
light as
long wheelbase makes it very stable at high speed
Weaknesses: bit sluggish in the tight turns
noisy (can be fixed with the sam hill approach)
pedalling affected when rear suspension deep in travel making it slow to pedal out of jumps
Bottom Line:
ok so i bought this bike second hand, 4 years old, living in Taranaki its had its fair amount of abuse, and the guy i bought it off dosen't go easy either,
from what i can tell it is still the original build to when he bought it, this shows if you maintain an orange 223 well, it will literally last forever!
when i first stepped over this bike, it just felt right, it pedals well, turns well- you just lean her in and she goes like shes on rails, she feels light in the air, and if you have your suspension set right she will destroy rock gardens, you just have to pick the right line as the BB is quite low,
on the maintenence side, everything that you will want to tune or get to easily to do maintenance is right there,
the only problem i have found with this bike that really annoyed me was how loud it was coming down the trails, but following Sam Hills example, i put 6mm aquarium hose around my brake hoses and gear cable, and some foam padding on the chainstay and this has more than fixed the problem, all i can hear now is the squelch of mud!!
i would definatley recommend this bike to anyone who rides downhill, shes a beaut!
Strengths: It's light, it's stable at high speed, it pedals fairly well. supsension setup obviously has a lot to do with this though. It has geometry that is very adjustable and so far, it has held up to some punishment, not that I've ever hucked it.
Weaknesses: Not necessarily a weakness. I guess it depends on your skill level but this thing is terrible under braking, especially in the rough stuff. You get bounced all over the place untill you learn to stay off the brakes. Took me a while to figure this one out. It's noisy as and doesn't come cheap. Personally, I think the frame is a rip off for what you get. It's turning isn't the best either
Bottom Line:
This is a lethal frame. It goes quick, really quick. The slack head angle and lenghty wheel base make this thing uber stable at speed. It loves to go fast, it pedals well if set up right. If you like the brakes, you won't like this bike. It takes a while to realise that you can still hit the rougher stuff off the brakes because the bike is stable enough to just carry you through it all. It sounds horrible but the full face should block out most of the noise. The front end is low and tends to go front end through a lot, which is fine, you just need to adapt if coming from a more freeride orientated bike. Looks wise, well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I'm still undecided on that one but it performs and that's what counts.
If you're looking at getting an orange, either a 222/3/4 as a first DH bike, probably not the best option. Definitely not a lot of fun for a beginner bike but a fast result can be made on this thing. It inspires confidence on the fast sections.
Weaknesses: paint is rubbish as soon as you show it a bit of mud floting rear brake system is a waste of time
Bottom Line:
this bike has withstood two seasons mainy uplifts a week in muddy morzine and two weekends at fort bill i have never had a problem with the frame and i have never felt held back by it i will be changing it for the summer but i will miss it i would recomend one to anyone (no 5 of 5 cause there will always be somthing better)
Weaknesses: to light in that they break.my swing arm snaped at the weld were it kicks out to alow for the 150mm bb. crap sevice from orange they wanted £700 for a new swing arm no discount even though i have 3 other orange bikes. performance wise i felt i had to change to clips because of pedal kick back.
Bottom Line:
I think the 223 is ok for a pro racer who rides clips,but i dont think it is a very confidence enspiring ride for the average rider. I was a big 223 fan but now i realise that was because i had not tried anything else. if you are buying a new dh rig i would not recomend an orange.
Strengths: 2006 orange 224, This is the lightest fastest bike I'v ever ridden, it pedals like a hard tail tracks like no other bike I have ridden and jumps like a kangeroo on speed. the build of the frame is orange's best ever the quality is 100% better than the 223.
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
This is the best race bike I have ever ridden( the fastest by far)you could also drop it of a cliff it is that well made. If you are looking to progress in racing this is the bike for you, my bike also weighs in at less than 40 pounds in weight with standard components. final words, buy one.
Similar Products Used: Intense m3, yeti dh9, works orange 223, ironhorse sunday, giant dh team.
Bike Setup: orange 224, fox dnx 5.0 with ti spring, fox 40 rc2,hadley hubs,race face diablous components, saint brakes and cranks and Burgtec penthouse flat pedals.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
julian
a Racer
from toronto, ontario, CANADA
Date Reviewed: February 15, 2005
Strengths: -very simple design -very light -insane strength -loads of travel -adjustable geometry -no pedal bob
Weaknesses: -there is a small amount of pedal feedback when pedaling up hill on rough terrain but this bike is ment for downhill so i cant complain -not all shocks will fit -floating brake is garbage not needed on this frame because of very minimal brake jack -kinds expensive for a single piv bike but once you ride it *PooF*...... what was i saying?
Bottom Line:
the orange 223 is an amazing bike it just flys over everything and inspires you to go faster, smoother, and bigger than ever before! i found it to be good at a downhill but it can also handle large drops and dirt jumping cause of its light weight and ease of pedaling. the only dissapointment of this bike was it having a fox rc it was over sprung and lacked adjustment it was also very noisy if u buy the bike with one upgrade it asap. i would reccomend this bike to anyone who is racing downhill if not go for the smaller lighter patriot. i like this bike more than all the others that i have tried because it just feels so stiff and solid and gets smoother the harder and faster you ride it if you dont go fast you wont feel the full potential of this bike. it feels amazing on tight twisty trails and even pedals over rough terrain easily
these are some major upgrades i have planned for the future that i feel will vastly improve the performance of the bike.
-fox dhx 5.0 because the rc just makes this bike feel like crap the other ones ive rode with swingers felt the best, better than the 5th even. so im expecting the dhx will be premium for this bike.
-RS boxxer team 05 because it will give the bike 8" up front and only raise the front end by a few millimeters. the slider + feels very nice on the bike and is easy to tune but i have no use for spv up front on this bike. i chose the boxxer because it has more useful adjustments can use a direct mount stem and can be custom tuned with ease.
i give this bike 5 and 5 because its amazing in all conditions and terrain and you get an outstanding bike for your money
Bike Setup: 04 orange 223 custom battleship grey with fox rc shock,manitou slider +, hope m6/m4 brakes, danger boy stem, sram x.7/x.9 drivetrain, xt hollow x-type cranks, chris king rasta headset , kenda tires
Strengths: light weight (39.2lb setup) low center of gravity performance proven chassis relatively little bob for a mega-travle single pivot unbelievably fast (sinks lower and lower as you go faster, very comfortable at high speed) sensitive suspension response (forget about the rear traction, you only need to steer well) top class craftsmanship, cool&durable paint job (won't chip off easily) low maintenance, strong strong tank-like single pivot frame, what's there to break (well, actually there is... refer to the weakness section)
Weaknesses: For 223, all specs are optimized for high speed racing. Which means, it is less fit for a daily freeride/DH bike. Difficult to handle when you're going slow. So... don't slow down on this bike. Definately not a weakness, but an important criteria when choosing your gear since not everyone's a worldcup racer.
BB height a tad low for rocky courses. You're bash guard will frequently bang the rocks. Wheelbase a bit long if you're trying to drag this thing through tight corners or technical rockies. I recommend you do not put anything longer than a 178mm boxxer on this frame. You will need to lean your bike 1 to 2 seconds quicker as you enter corners (well if you know all the courses, that is...) Do you really need a floating disk brake system for this frame? I'm not sure, it only makes the rear brake response numb and the linkage bar seems vulnerable to rock gardens. Caliper mount doesn't seem sturdy, needs reinforcements.
When bottummed out, the rear tire will frequently caress the rear end of your seat. Cable routing well designed but still needs improvement. Brake cable rubs against frame surface as floating system operates.
Bottom Line:
DHS MONO's the Ferrari Ellsworth Dare's the JEEP V10 maybe a VIPER or Z05 Corvette the 223... a Lotus 7 or a Caterham maybe?
light, cool, fast, very sexy but also delicate and sometimes not too scientific
No alternative if you're a serious racer. Just just just buy one. No bike's lighter, faster than this one(what more do you need?)
If you're into drops, jumps, hucking and technical show-offs, think again. Being light and fast has little to do with such style of riding.
